– faster charging solves it. Being able to charge your battery with the speed and convenience of refuelling a tank is the final piece of the puzzle in bringing mass-volume, mainstream battery EV manufacturing to the world. “The smart #1 charges at 150 kW DC now, but higher rates will come. Like every OEM, we’re working on improving that rate over time, but even now, if you can charge a battery from 10-80% SoC in 30 minutes, you can make an EV capable of long-distance trips. “Granted, the charging infrastructure first has to be improved in Europe and other parts of the world, but chargers and stations across most of Europe are now more than good enough for any long trips across central Europe, say. “And every new generation of batteries will shorten charging times by at least 20-30%, it’s just a matter of time before charging your battery will be like refilling your gas tank. Once the technology reaches that point, it doesn’t exactly need to improve dramatically beyond that – after all, people have to get out of their cars and stretch their legs at some point.” E-Mobility Engineering | November/December 2023 17 quite compact to help with the internal space and ergonomic packaging emblematic of our brand,” Dr Schweers notes. “Switching to hub motors might give us a bit more internal space but that’s not a technology we believe in at the moment owing to its cost and its impact on the quality of driving. “And our battery packs are pretty flat, allowing the #1 and future cars to avoid the typical battery EV problem where your foot position is too high in the car and your seating becomes uncomfortable. So it doesn’t make sense to spend a fortune making our motors, transmission or suspension 5% smaller, because customers would then have to pay for that r&d later.” The company has also unveiled the upcoming smart #3. It has been developed with the aim of being a sportier SUV, and is therefore larger than the #1 and features lower roof lines, seating positions and ground clearances, along with improved aerodynamics and range. Naturally, it is also designed for drivers seeking a more dynamic and sportscar-like look. ‘Smarter’ about batteries Moving forwards, smart’s r&d team is continuing to work on features and capabilities to tailor the new smart EVs’ differing preferences between European and Chinese drivers. Primarily this consists of modifications to the driver UI, although cabin ergonomics and similar factors can be adjusted by moving components around to suit those preferences. Any changes needed in driving and handling characteristics can be programmed through the vehicle’s electronics. “The backing of the joint venture and the software-defined nature of the EVs’ subsystems mean we can make adjustments to the car fluidly, without the expenses involved in the early and small-volume days of smart,” Dr Schweers says. “And technologically, there have been advances in batteries since then that have really made battery EVs mainstream in the automotive world, the most important I feel being ways to fast-charge batteries without shortening their lifespans. What we see now – and what was foreseeable years ago – is a change in what’s being targeted in battery r&d.” He explains that battery researchers and e-mobility strategists are moving away from attempts to pile ever more energy and range into each pack, and therefore making them and EVs unreasonably heavy. He says it makes more sense for the next generation of battery packs to come with reduced range and instead increased charging speeds. Readers may recall that this perspective is shared by Viritech’s Matt Faulks (EME 17, January/February 2023) and Nyobolt’s Dr Sai Shivareddy (EME 21, September/October 2023), whose EVs and batteries are both formulated along such lines. “If you really want to go long distances with an EV, battery size is not the enabler,” Dr Schweers comments. “Making a bigger, heavier and costlier battery is just postponing the problem Dr Tilo Schweers Dr Tilo Schweers grew up near Bremen, in Germany, and after his primary and secondary education went to the Institute of Automotive Engineering at RWTH Aachen University, where he achieved a PhD in stability control systems. After that he worked as an assistant professor at the institute from 1989 to ’94, before switching to a senior engineer role, applying his practical knowledge in several research programmes. He worked at Smart as head of homologation, technical documentation and special vehicle engineering for Smart EV and HEV programmes from 1996 until 2006, when the Smart company was absorbed into the Daimler/Mercedes-Benz group. During those years, Dr Schweers led the Smart electric drive programme and the commercialisation of the smart EQ Fortwo EV, including its volume production and meeting all the necessary safety and emissions regulations to begin selling it in North America. At Daimler/Mercedes-Benz he served as head of special vehicles, with a focus on initiating and running different EV and HEV programmes, leaving in 2016 to work for Borgward Group. In 2020, Dr Schweers returned to the reborn Smart marque as vice-president, r&d, of smart Europe, where he is overseeing the creation of smart Automobile’s next generation of EVs, including the upcoming smart #1 and #3, as well as the company’s r&d in Europe.
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